Tools Are For Women Too!: HOW TO REPURPOSE A CROSS by Layne

When you are a West Texas cotton farmer's wife, you tend to be a little frugal every now and then, which is usually everyday for me over at
THE LIFE OF THE FARMER'S WIFE!

While getting some laundry detergent at the local dollar store, I came across a clock cross that I thought was absolutely atrocious. I am sure that some people would like it, but it just was not my taste and I knew that I could snazzy it up and make it something great. Anything is possible, if you use your imagination. Then I remembered that my good friend Kayla had asked me a while back to make her a cross in honor of her dog "Prissy" who died. However, I didn't want to spend a lot of money on the project, so this is what I ended up doing.

I bought the hideous clock cross for $6, knowing good and well that I was going to go home and grab my hammer and beat the heck out of it, until the clock pieces came off. And that is exactly what I did, however the numbers were part of the cross itself, so I had to function with the imprint of the numbers.

After that, I took spray paint and sprayed the cross a pretty pink color, since Kayla had told me she wanted the cross to be pink and black. You can still see the imprint of the numbers, but not for long.

After I painted the cross, I used my Heritage Makers program to make the name PRISSY and little saying for the cross. Yes, it is a little cheesy saying, but it is something that will be special for my friend Kayla.

After I printed the name and the saying, I got some zebra fabric and applied it to the cross to cover the imprint of the numbers, with Elmer's Spray Adhesive (which I was carded for at the dollar store, when I bought it). I then applied the name and the saying to the cross, wherever they looked good, along with little bling to the cross, just to make it girly and shiny. You do not want to add too much, but you want to add just enough. Make sure before you add too much, you step back and take a look at what you have. It really does help to not over do it.

Once you have the cross glued on how you want everything, it is time to put the top coat on. For the top coat, I use Triple Thick. I like Triple Thick, because it is a clear, non-yellowing finish and it is more like acrylic than Modge Podge. You apply the first layer and then you have to let it dry. If you do not let the first layer dry, adding more layers will not do any good. I usually add enough layers to make it completely smooth. However, in this case you will want it to have a 3D effect, with the bling.

Once the Triple Thick is dry, you can then add ribbon to your cross, to hang it on the wall or a little bow. It is truly up to you. Like I said you can make it into whatever your imagination desires. This is just an example of what you can do, without spending a lot of money on supplies and without going overboard. Now the only thing I need to do is add the ribbon.

Now that I added the ribbon to hang the cross on the wall, I step back and look at it. It is just what Kayla wanted. Remember, you could decorate the cross any way you want, just have fun with it and don't forget you can do this with anything that you want to change the appearance on.